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Iraqi security forces raided the office and home of a leading Sunni official in Baghdad on Thursday, prompting fears that Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is cracking down on political opponents. The official, Rafie al-Issawi, Iraq's finance minister and a prominent member of the Iraqiya political coalition, said that about 150 of his guards and staff members had been arrested. Al-Issawi described the move as a “pre-election blow” intended to weaken al-Maliki's rivals before provincial elections scheduled for the spring. Iraq's president, Jalal Talabani, who has been incapacitated by a stroke, was flown to Germany on Thursday for medical care. Talabani, a Kurd, played a role in tamping down tensions during a similar political crisis in December of 2011.

ATTACK ON POLICE IN BENGHAZI KILLS FOUR

At least four people were killed after militants attacked a security headquarters in Benghazi, Libya, signaling a sharp escalation in a battle between armed Islamist militants and government forces. The attack on the security directorate building with rocket-propelled grenades and hand grenades was the latest in a string of attacks on police facilities since last month, when the assassination of Benghazi's security director was followed by multiple arrests.

More than 20,000 missing in Mexico

A civic organization released a database it says contains official information on more than 20,000 people who have disappeared in Mexico over the past six years. Propuesta Civica, or Civic Proposal, posted the database allegedly collected by the federal Attorney General's Office on its website. It lists 20,851 people who went missing during the administration of former President Felipe Calderón, who launched a crackdown against drug traffickers. A spokesman with federal prosecutors said the Attorney General's Office has no knowledge of the document. The missing include police officers, bricklayers, housewives, lawyers, students, businessmen and more than 1,000 children under the age of 11.

PALESTINIAN LEADER CALLS FOR BOYCOTT

Israel's refusal this month to transfer tax revenue to the West Bank has undermined the Palestinian Authority's already dire finances, prompting the prime minister, Salam Fayyad, to call for a boycott of Israeli goods. Israel said it was using the money to pay off part of a debt run up by the Palestinian Authority to the Israel Electric Corp. and other Israeli providers. The sanctions followed the Palestinians' successful bid last month to upgrade their U.N. status to that of a nonmember observer state.

U.N. OKS ACTION TO OUST AL-QAIDA IN MALI

The U.N. Security Council authorized military action to wrest northern Mali from the control of al-Qaida-linked extremists but demanded progress first on political reconciliation, elections and training African troops and police. The resolution authorized an African-led force to support Malian authorities in recovering the Texas-sized north but set no date for action.

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